Book of Shadows
by JoIsBishMyoga
Summary: Hiei stops by Kurama's house with a few questions guaranteed to pique the youko's interest. Crossover with Card Captor Sakura. Final chapter now revised.
1. Prologue

Not mine, not going to be mine, don't want them to be mine b/c then I wouldn't get to play with them, not making any money off this (don't I wish I could!), don't have any money, don't sue. 

Rated for language. 

Book of Shadows - a CCS/YYH xover by Jochan 

Prologue 

A hint of the sticky heat of summer lingered in the still evening air, though the forecast promised the coming morning would be crisp and chill. The leaves of most of the trees in Tokyo were edged with vibrant golds, but the tree outside the Minamino residence was green from crown to root. 

In his room, 17-year-old Minamino Shuiichi -- also known as Kurama -- bent piously over his homework, his pen scribbling elegantly over the page as he wrote a report for his advanced literature class. A sudden breeze from his open window tugged at his long red hair, blowing it into his eyes. He brushed it back and pushed his glasses slightly higher on his nose, as if that would keep his hair out of his face. 

"Hello, Hiei," he called absently, well aware of the source of the breeze. 

A shadow in the tree outside moved, then resolved itself into a second youth, a dark-haired boy dressed in black, standing on the window ledge. He was shorter than Kurama, with a bleached white cloth covering his forehead, and a small, heart-shaped face. Garnet-red eyes took in the surroundings flatly, then locked on to Kurama himself. 

"Since when do you need glasses?" Hiei asked. 

"Since never," Kurama answered, used to Hiei's habit of ignoring pleasantries. He set his pen down and turned to face Hiei with a smile. "They're preventative... meant for reading small print without damaging your vision." 

Hiei stepped down onto the rug, frowning. "You don't need that crap." 

"Mother doesn't know that. Using them keeps her happy, though, so..." Kurama shrugged, then tapped the bridge piece. "Besides, I look good in them." Hiei snorted quietly, and Kurama continued more seriously, "But I doubt you came by to ask me about my eyewear. How's Makai?" 

"Boring." Closing the window, Hiei sat down pensively on the bed. "I need information." 

"There's a surprise," Kurama murmured. 

Hiei scowled, but continued, "What do you know about Clow Cards?" 

Kurama blinked. "_Clow_ Cards?" he repeated incredulously. Hiei nodded. "Why on earth do you need to hear about _that_?" 

"Humor me." 

"All right... The Clow." Kurama settled back into his desk chair, steepling his hands before him. "Clow was a sorcerer, a master of occidental as well as oriental magics, who lived between two and four centuries ago. He was the most powerful human magician of his day, perhaps of this millennium, and his life's masterpiece was a single deck of cards, named The Clow, similar to the occidental Tarot. There are 52 Clow Cards in the deck, ranging from D-class to B-class in strength, and two A-class, sentient Guardians. The Guardians are contained on the front and back cover of a book that holds the Cards. And that book, with every Card in it, disappeared the instant that Clow himself died." Hiei stared at Kurama impassively, and the redhead added, "Don't you know all this already? It's been a legend since Clow's days. Hundreds of demons vanished trying to get their hands on them." 

"Describe the Guardians." 

Kurama rolled his eyes. "A white-haired angel, dressed in blue and white, and a winged lion without a mane, wearing an iron collar and headpiece. Now will you tell me why you asked?" 

"I wanted to know how much you knew," Hiei answered simply, eyes glittering. 

"And why...? Oh, no." Kurama suddenly recognized that glitter. "No, no, no... Hiei, you aren't seriously thinking of _looking_ for the Clow, are you?" The faintest hint of a smirk answered him. "You are. And you're going to try to talk me into going along. Forget it! You may as well go looking for Atlantis, or the Tomb of Amenowakahiko. You're more likely to find them!" 

"I'm not planning to look for the Clow," Hiei said dutifully. 

"Good." 

"I've found it." 

Kurama gaped at him. Slowly, Hiei's mouth curved into a broad, wicked grin. 

"You..." Kurama's voice broke. He swallowed and tried again. "You've _found_ it?" 

"I've found the angel," Hiei corrected. "It wouldn't be too far from the deck, so... interested in a little heist?" 

"Hiei... if you're serious, _hell_ yes." 

TBC 


	2. Preplanning

Some quick notes: 

Major SPOILERS for CCS, starting this chapter. 

Amenowakahiko is a figure from Japanese myth. I lost the site that I found his name on when my computer crashed, though, so I can't be sure of his exact role. 

Sakura means cherry tree. 

Soccer in American English translates to football everywhere else. 

Ch. 1 - Preplanning 

Late the next morning, a fresh maple leaf, oddly large for its species, lodged itself over the lens of a security camera on the roof of a high-rise hotel. A minute later, Hiei and Kurama exited the stairwell access. The redhead glanced instinctively towards the camera, checking his handiwork, then took a bike chain from his pocket and padlocked the door shut. 

Hiei ignored this, striding to the low wall encircling the rooftop and leaping onto it. He closed his eyes and tugged his headband off, revealing a third eye in the center of his forehead. It snapped open, glowing violet, and began scanning the horizon. 

Kurama stepped up near Hiei and waited. Soon, the Jagan Eye focused sharply and froze, locked to one point. 

"There... got him," Hiei said. His normal eyes opened, and he stepped back, waving Kurama to sit on the ledge before him. Kurama did so, dangling his legs over the thirty-story drop and closing his eyes. Hiei's hand curled over Kurama's forehead, and a wealth of images exploded into Kurama's mind. 

_Soar over thirty kilometers bright little suburb -- Tomoeda -- pretty park little houses sakura-lined road row of shops shrine church school little children older children teenagers crowded into classrooms out on the soccer field soccer team dark-haired boy shoots the goal "Kinomoto-kuuuuun!" cheers running passing pewter hair glasses smiles overlying angel cold angel flying low over field under image boy laughing shoots the goal "Tsukishiro-kuuuun!" hazel/violet eyes turn to dark-haired boy image smiles angel smiles--_

"You see it?" Hiei asked quietly. They'd done this so rarely, Kurama couldn't always manage to navigate the Jagan's visions without help. 

"Yes..." Kurama murmured. His mouth quirked in amusement. "Playing soccer, of all things... can we look for the deck?" 

"Yes." 

And the images swirled. 

_Dark-haired boy magic residue emptied gone circle players magic none circle crowd magic none magic magic where's the magic circle the school nothing nothing nothing all human downstairs upstairs on the roof having a smoke light glimmers below next door "hei hei, Tomoeda, hei hei Tomoeda!" little girls little uniforms little cheerleader shining bright magic "hei!"-- _

Hiei jerked away. A shocked silence descended over the pair. A little girl? The only person near Clow's angel with any magic at all... was a little girl? 

"How embarrassing," Kurama eventually groaned, breaking the shock. "Can we be sure...?" 

Another minute of silence, then Hiei sighed and retied his headband, warding the Jagan Eye away. "The deck's there. It's her." 

"Damn." They sat for a moment, considering, then Kurama turned, eyeing Hiei. "This... could be better than an adult Master," he said slowly. "It won't be an interesting theft, but we won't have to kill her." A flicker of -- was it relief? -- flashed through Hiei's eyes. "We may not even have to hurt her at all," Kurama added. 

Hiei smirked. "Then maybe we can keep the Guardians." 

Kurama's eyes brightened. "You're right! If we don't hurt the Master, but we gain control of the Cards--" 

"--We can Master the Guardians as well--" 

"-- And Clow's deck will be in pristine condition!" They shared identical, wicked grins. If they managed to pull this off, getting the Guardians as well, their reputations would be redeemed. They would be known as master thieves once more, not Team Urameshi's pet demons. There was just one more little detail needed to seal their redemption. 

".... We'll need to get the book." 


	3. The Attempt

A/N: sigh Hiei and Kurama don't know where in the CCS series this is, so I can't have them flat-out tell that. But since so many people have asked, this is set after Shaoran moves back to Hong Kong, but before he returns to Japan. Basically, after the anime series, in the gap between the actual story and the very last couple of pages in the manga. (Yes, around the time of the second movie -- feel free to include or ignore it as you like. It doesn't have any effect on the storyline.) 

------------------------------------------------------------ 

Ch. 2 - The Attempt 

Hiei knelt on a branch high in a tree, across the street from the elementary school. This was closer than he'd ever been to the girl or the angel -- dangerously close, particularly since she was outside right now. But it was necessary. Two weeks of survelliance had only proven to Hiei and Kurama that the Cards were better protected than they thought. By night, the girl and her Cards were with the Sun Guardian (who spent much of his time as a plush toy, a fact that had left the two thieves rolling with laughter the first time they'd seen him, stuffed into the girl's coat pocket). By day, the girl was rarely with the Sun Guardian, but the Moon Guardian, the angel, was always with the dark-haired boy who'd been drained of magic. This boy had turned out to be the girl's overprotective brother, and he was rarely more than a single mile from the girl. The angel could be at his Master's side -- and therefore, with the Cards -- at a moment's notice. 

Hiei checked a clock inside the school, using his Jagan eye. 10:09 am. Kurama should be ready within a few minutes. Would be, actually. Hiei had to have faith in the fox. He couldn't delay much longer; gym class was nearly over. A quick glance through the high school next door showed the angel in class. The overlying image was intent on a test, though the angel underneath was watching the girl's brother. Good -- the Guardian hadn't noticed Hiei yet. 

He flickered and darted into the school. It took half a second to pick the lock on the girls' locker room, and then he was in. Finding the girl's locker was easy. He didn't need to look for her name or student number, for the deck itself nearly hid it. Dozens of sleeping, pastel beings -- humans, animals, inanimate objects, and even a couple of living patterns, all embodiments of magical principles -- were impossibly crammed into one locker. The images shifted and flickered, twisting around each other as Hiei's mind tried to cope with the impossibility of the visuals his Jagan was sending to his brain. But Hiei was used to this, and simply shut his eyes. 

Reaching out, brushing sensitive fingers over the thin metal doors, Hiei found the combination knob nearest to the beings. A slow spin to the left-- around, and around, and then inching until the tumbler clicked -- then back, until the tumbler clicked again, and forwards a smidgen more, the last tumbler falling into place. He lifted the latch, stretched his other hand into the locker, and felt for the purse. Folded clothing, metal wall, hook-- ah. Purse strap. 

He snatched it out, slammed the door closed, spun the tumbler, and darted from the school at his top speed. 

_I got it-- I got them-- I got the Clow Cards--!_ He couldn't help it. Just finding them had been more than anyone else had ever managed, and actually GETTING them... Hiei desperately reminded himself that it was too early to be excited (after all, they had to get the book, and then survive the Guardians), but the excitement remained. 

Seconds later, and miles away, Hiei skidded to a stop before a park bench. Kurama sat on it, his eyes closed, a vine resting in his lap and curling down the bench legs, into the woods. "Got it," Hiei announced, calling Kurama's attention back to his body. 

"Mm...?" Kurama's eyes opened, just a slit. Hiei opened the purse and held it directly in the fox's line-of-sight, careful not to touch the Cards themselves. A moment passed, while the miniscule bit of Kurama's mind that wasn't focused on his vine processed the sight. "Are they... supposed to be... pink?" 

"What?" 

"They're pink." 

Hiei glanced down, but he couldn't see anything past the magic. "So what? Can you get the book?" 

"Mm." That wasn't agreement. Hiei frowned, but Kurama added, "Sun's too close." Oh. The Sun Guardian was too close to the book. Kurama went fully into his trance again, and Hiei tucked the purse under his cloak and plopped onto the bench to wait. 

Light flickered at the corner of his eye. He tensed to glance over, but Kurama abruptly sucked in a breath and jerked out of his trance, bolting to his feet. "The Guardian's coming!" he hissed. 

Hiei jumped to his feet as Kurama tossed his vine deep into the trees behind them. "How?" he asked sharply. How had they--? Another flicker of light in the corner of his eye, and Kurama yanked open Hiei's cloak. 

Flat rectangles of light were zipping from the purse, through the pale leather, darting off into the sky towards the school. The Cards--! The Master could call them back-- was calling them back! Hiei pulled his warding bandages from his pocket -- they could wrap up the rest, keep them and recollect the lost ones-- Kurama caught his wrist. 

"He's tracking the Cards, he must be--!" No more needed to be said. Hiei threw the purse to the ground, using the warding cloth to hide his Jagan instead, and they ran. 


	4. Take Two

Ch. 3 - Take Two 

Several days later, the two thieves took a fire escape to the roof of one of the few short office buildings in Tomoeda. They knelt at the edge of the roof, peering over the low protective wall, and Hiei pulled his headband off. His Jagan opened, scanning the near vicinity. 

"Where?" Kurama asked, intent gaze flicking warily across the pedestrians on the street below. 

"The angel... cram school, with the brother," Hiei answered, Jagan pausing barely a moment. "The girl... in the park, with the video girl, the Sun Guardian, and the book and deck." 

Kurama didn't bother to sigh. "Again?" 

"Colossal error," Hiei said shortly, referring to their first attempt. "Put the Guardians on guard. Angel's not even focused on the brother." 

"Ah." Kurama ran a hand through his hair, catching a small seed. "I'll be about fifty kilos. Will I slow you down?" 

"No," Hiei answered. 

Kurama put the seed in his mouth, closed his eyes, and shifted. A faint swirl of mist passed over the roof, leaving a large, five-tailed, silver fox sitting where Kurama had been. 

Lifting the fox into his arms, Hiei darted away. He leapt from rooftop to rooftop, using telephone poles and treetops when the roofs were slightly too far apart. Seconds later, he landed in the park and set the fox down. It turned, flicked one tail at him in farewell, and slipped into the bushes. 

Hiei leapt up into a tree to wait and keep watch. 

---- 

Kurama ran through the trees, aiming for a particular patch of bushes. He trusted Hiei to have dropped him off near a path the girl had to be taking, and the nearest one had a line of large bushes growing nearly on the road. They would conceal him excellently. 

He slid under the low evergreens, slithering on his belly as the branches pushed themselves up to let him pass. Soon, he reached the edge of the walkway, and brought his legs under him, readying himself. The branches above him slowly stretched and untangled. 

-- And there they were! Two little girls, eleven years old, were walking along the path towards him. The long-haired girl's team of bodyguards were nowhere in sight, but they wouldn't have been much of a problem anyway. They were only human. Besides, the short-haired one was his target... ah, and there, in her backpack, Kurama could see the Sun Guardian's plushie-toy head poking out. They were all completely oblivious. 

Closer... closer... Kurama opened his mouth, a seed on the tip of his tongue... closer... five steps... three... two-- 

Kurama leapt from the bushes, the seed exploding into life and bloom. He blew through the bell-shaped flower, a cloud of pollen bursting into the girls' and Guardian's faces. The girls crumpled, unconscious, but the Guardian-- did not. _Shit!_

"ARA--!" It spat flames haphazardly at Kurama, momentarily blinded by the pollen and its own wings. Kurama dropped the plant, already smoldering into ashes, turned tail, and ran. 

Kurama could hear the Sun Guardian roar behind him, the deep, throaty roar it couldn't possibly give outside its true form, but he was hidden by the trees already. _Run!_ he risked sending the mental command to Hiei, before darting into a fox's abandoned summer den. He curled up and clamped down on his power, becoming essentially invisible -- he hoped. 

---- 

_Run!_ Kurama's voice shot through Hiei's mind. But Hiei was already in motion; the angel he'd been watching had snapped his head around, his gaze pinned to the park, and the overlying image of a human boy was raising a hand. He would ask to be excused within seconds--! 

_If Kurama needs a rescue, I'll never let him live it down_, Hiei thought. He pivoted as he made this split-second decision, and darted away from the park rather than towards the fox. Miles away, he found an apartment building and hid on the roof. He took his warding bandages from his pocket, sparing only a second to check the Guardians' locations. The Sun Guardian was in full form, standing over the groggy children, on his guard with fur bristling. The Moon Guardian flew low over the park, searching. 

Hiei rewrapped his third eye, clamped down on his power, and hid in the stairwell access. 

---- 

Several hours later, after the Guardians had taken the girls home, Kurama crept out of the abandoned den. He shook himself like a dog, getting the worst of the dirt and debris off, then sat back and scratched behind his ear with a hind leg. 

Makai naplily -- it should have worked! He stretched, tails flaring like a peacock's feathers, and returned to human form. 

"Failed again..." he muttered under his breath. He trudged from the park, heading home. This was ridiculous. This was embarrassing. When he and Hiei planned the next attempt... the LAST attempt... they would have to have a little talk. 

No more of this 'don't hurt the Master' crap. 

TBC 

A/N: 

- I know that the Sleep Card's glitter works on Kero, and not Mizuki-sensei and presumably not Sakura. Naplily pollen isn't the same stuff.


	5. Third Time's the Charm

Ch. 4 - Third Time's the Charm

A mere two days later, Hiei and Kurama found a quiet street near the girl's house. Still clamping down on their power, they gazed towards the girl's empty house with blank, shuttered eyes. The deck was with her. The book was with her. The Sun Guardian was with her. The Moon Guardian, though...

A faint sense of silvery-misty power approached, and they slipped into a bus shelter. The Moon Guardian passed high overhead, invisible as the new moon against the bright sky.

Kurama sighed. "Two days... we can't stay and elude him for much longer." He left unsaid that suppressing their power enough to hide from the Guardians in a human town was starting to get painful, at least for him. Hiei showed no sign of discomfort, but he had added an extra layer of warding cloths to his Jagan and Kokuryuuha tattoo this morning.

"I don't have that much leave left from Mukuro," Hiei said flatly. "The girl will be an adult next time I have more."

And if Kurama stole the Cards without Hiei, after the fire demon had invited him in the first place, Hiei would kill him. If the Guardians didn't do it first.

"An adult Master is an unnecessary risk," Kurama mused. "We have three hours before she gets out of school. Think that's enough time to pick a good ambush site?"

"I have some places in mind."

----

"Where's she going? That isn't the way home."

Hiei shook his head, a curt gesture of 'no idea'. The two thieves, lounging on a balcony with their magic as tightly hidden as possible, watched as the girl turned down the wrong street. From here, an apartment building near the top of the church hill, they didn't have the best view... but they had good eyesight, and only a close inspection would reveal that they weren't perfectly normal humans enjoying the pleasant day. The angel would notice them trailing the girl, or on any rooftop in the city, but not here.

Unless they did something completely stupid, like jump down to the street, which they just might have to do if they lost track of the girl.

The sense of mist-silver trailed the girl; that would be helpful. Kurama glanced at Hiei; the little demon's eyes were tracking the angel better than Kurama's own, despite the fact that they were both suppressing their power. Kurama let his gaze travel over the part of town the girl was headed to. There was nothing there she could possibly be going to, was there? The bakery, the greengrocer, the fish market, all the little shops were in the other direction. Her father's college wasn't within walking distance, and she'd passed the bus stop already. Her little set of class friends lived scattered in other areas of town. So where...?

"Tsukimine Shrine," Kurama murmured. There were light protections against evil there, and... "The scrying pool."

Hiei stiffened. "If I block that, I'd have to use the Jagan. I'll be broadcasting our location over five kilometers or more."

"What?" That didn't make sense.

"Watching is mostly passive," Hiei explained. "Like a telescope. Blocking is active. I may as well try to hide us by blinding the girl with a searchlight." As if they didn't have enough pressure. Hiei continued, "The angel's circled... he's moving on. Must trust the temple wards to compensate." Finally! One bit of luck in this whole mess.

"Let's go," Kurama said.

They leapt from the balcony and ran down the streets to the Tsukimine Shrine. A second's pause outside the shrine, for Kurama to make a sketchy invocation to affirm his humanity, and he pulled Hiei past the wards without tripping any alarms. They walked openly through the paved temple grounds proper, into the forested parts behind the buildings, without meeting anyone. Hiei took to the trees once there was enough cover, and Kurama walked more slowly towards the scrying pool, shoes silent against the path.

He found the girl on the platform where one watched the pool. Her long-haired friend and the Sun Guardian remained off of it, the Guardian hovering watchfully. Kurama slipped behind a large tree before he could be spotted.

"... know if this will work during the day," the girl was saying nervously.

"Sure it will," the Sun Guardian said. Kurama bit his lip with some amusement. The Guardian had an Osaka accent. "Ya gotta just wait a bit longer."

"If you're sur--" the girl tensed, a hand going to her throat.

"Sakura-chan?" her long-haired friend asked.

"I feel something..."

Kurama slapped his seed onto the grass. Too late-- NOW! He freed his power and shoved it into the seed. Fireproof vines exploded from the ground. They shot five feet into the air and twisted, catching the three targets -- the long-haired girl, Sakura, and the Sun Guardian. They encased the toy's half-grown wings, stopping the transformation, and coiled around limbs and heads, muffling shrieks and yanking Sakura's hand away from her collar.

Hiei leapt from his perch in the tree, hand outstretched for the purse.

Something in Sakura's hand flashed into bright light, magic bursting outwards into an intricate spellcasting circle around the child. A baton appeared, growing from the light in her outstretched hand.

But by this time, Hiei was already almost to the purse of Cards. The wand pulsed with energy, and suddenly Hiei was frozen in mid-air, matter streaming from him in ribbons of violet-black, coalescing at the tip of the girl's baton.

The undiluted shock on the smaller demon's face as he began to fade from sight was enough to make Kurama break cover. "Hiei--!" he yelled, one hand outstretched, the other pulling a rose from his hair. But the light was touching him as well, and silver was streaming from his body.

_How humiliating_... he thought, just before darkness swallowed him up.

----

The streams of glowing mist that had been Hiei and Kurama flattened and shrank, pressing themselves into thin rectangles of colorful light. They pulsed once -- just once -- and the light snapped off, revealing five new Cards.

The Thief.

The Mask.

The Swift.

The Sight.

And The Destroy.

* * *

Author's Note:

I came up with this story after finding far too many fics where popular characters never make any real mistakes. They only mess up through inexperience (mostly with relationships), or by underestimating a ridiculously strong opponent and getting their butts rightfully kicked. I wanted to write a story where they really, honestly screw up for a change... just like anybody else can. Therefore, I did.

So... are they dead? Are they alive? Can they be restored? Quite honestly, I don't know. There is a sequel, but it's only a vague collection of images and two-and-a-half short chapters of the CCS people being very, very confused. I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for it if I were you -- it doesn't promise to coalesce into anything more for a very, very long time.


End file.
